Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1887-06-07

more / felt mitch disturbed az this most uh'
common sight "Shc watches Leo sleep"
"I.eoln said Ayesha, in an absent volcel
"why that is lion in tho Latin tongue The
old man hath named happily for once. IL Is
very strange she went on-"very. SO like
hut Is not impossible With an inpatient
gesture sho passed her hand over the water
once more II darkened, and tho image van
ishcd silently and mysteriously as 1t had
arisen, and once more tho lamp light. ana
the lamp light only, shone on the placid sur
face of that limpid, living mirror,
"Hnst thou aught TO ask me before thou
poest. oh Hollyln she said, nftcr few mo-
ments' reflection. alt is but rude life that
thou must live here, for these people are saw
ages, and know not the ways OF cultivated
man. Not that am troubled thereby, for,
behold my food" and she pointed to the fruit
upon the little table. "Naught but fruit doth
ever pass my lips-fruit and little water.
have hidden my girls to wait upon thee.
They are mutcs, thou llnowest, deaf are they
and dumb, and therefore the safest OF SER
wants. save to those who can read their faces
and their signs. l bred them so; 1t hath
taken many centuries and Inuch trouble, but
Mt last have succeeded. Once | succeeded
before, but tho race was too ugly, SO did
AWAY with il; but now, as thou seest they
are otherwise Once, too, bred a race OF
giants, but after while Nature would no
more of It, and it died away. Hast thou
aught to nsk of meF
GAY, one thing oh Ayesha," said, boldly,
but feeling by no means as bold as l trust
looked II would gaze upon thy face"
She laughed out in her bell like notes "Bo-
think thee, Holly" she answercd-"Lethink
thee. 1t seems that thou knowest the old
myths Of the gods OF Greece. Was there not
one Actnon who persisted miserably because
no looked on too much beauty II show
thee my face, perchnnco thou wnudst perish
miserably also; perchanco thou wouldst cat
out thy heart in impotent desireI for know
am not for thee; / am for no man, save one,
who hath been, but is not yet
aAs thou wilt, Ayesha," / said. IL fear
not thy beauty. have put my heart away
from such vanities as woman's loveliness, that
passes like flower"
@Nay, thou crest she said; shat does not
pass. Ny beauty endures even as ] endure;
| still II thou wilt, oh rash man, have thy will.
But blame not me il passion mount thy rea-
son, as the Egyptian breakers used to mount
n horse, and guide it whittier thou wilt not.
Never may the man to whom my beauty hath
been unveiled put it from his mind, and
therefore even with these savages do go
yelled lest they vex me and l should STAY
them. Say, wilt thou scc".
II will, answered, my curiosity oyerpow-
ering me-
She lifted her white and rounded arms
never had ! seen such arms beforehand
slowly, verJ slowly. withdrew some fastening
beneath het hair. Then all of a sudden the
long, cor1so like wrappings fell from her and
nv eyes travelled up her form, now only
robed in garb of clinging white that did but
serve to show its perfect and imperial shape
instinct with life that was more than life
and with certain serpent like grace that
was more than human. On her little feet
vero sandals fastened with studs of gold
Then came ankles more perfect than ever
SCULPTOR dreamed Of About the waist her
white kirtle was fastened by double headed
snake,of solid gold, above which her gracious
form syelled up in lines as pure as they
were lovely, till the kirtle ended on
the snowy argent OF her breast, whereon
her arms were folded. ] gazed above them
mt her face and--I do not exaggerate-shrnnk
bacl, blinded and amazed. l have heard OF
tho beauty Of celestial b0ings; now ] saw IT,;
| only this beauty, with all It's awful LONELINESS
and purity, was evil--at least, at the time,
it struck me as evil How am to describe
it'll can not-simply, can not The man
docs not live whose pen could convey a sense
of what saw. l might talk of the great
changing eyes of deepest, softest black, of the
| tinted face, Of the broad and noble brow, on
which the hair grew low, and delicate,
straight features. But beautiful, surpass-
inrly beautiful as the. Il were, her loneliness
did not lie in them. 1t lay rather, il it can
be said to have any fAed abiding place, in a
visible majesty, in an imperial grace, in n
god like stamp of softened power, that shone
upon that radiant cot tenance like living
halo. Never before had l guessed what
beauty made sublime could be- and yet the
sublimity was dark one, the glory was not
oil of heaven, though none the less was 1t
glorious Though the face before mo WINS
that of young woman IN perfect health and
the first flush of ripoi.d beauty, yet IL had
stamped upon it a loo. If unutterablc expert
ence md Of deep acquaintance with grief and
passion Not even the lovely smile that crcpt
nlout the dinplcs of -er mouth could hide
this shadow of sin and sorrow. 1t shonc even
in tho light OF the glorious oyos, 1t was pres
ent in the air OF majesty, and it seemed &c
say, "Behold me, lovely as no woman was or
Is, undying and half divine. Memory baunts
me from ago to ago, and passion leads mo by
the hand. Evil have done, and with sorrow
have made acquaintance from age to ago
and from age to age evil shall do and sor
row shall know till my redemption comes.
Drawn by some magnetic force which
could not resist, let my eyes rest upon her
shining orbs, and felt current pass from
them to me that bcwldered and half blinded
me.
She laughed-ah, how musically ant
nodded her little head at me with an air o
sublimated coquetry that would have don
credit to a Venus Victrix.
Crash man." she said; alike Acteon, thol
Inst had thy will; be careful lest, like Act@on
thou too dost perish miserably, torn to piece
by the banhounds OF thine own passion. too
oh Holly, am a virgin goddess, not to b
moved of any man, save one, and it is no
thou. Say, hast thou seen enoughP
II have looked on beauty, and l IN
blinded" l said, hoarsely, lifting my hand +
cover up my eyes.
"Sol what did tell theel Besuty Is Xix
the lightning; it is lovely, but 1t destroys
especially trees, oh Holly"
Suddenly she paused, and through m,
fingers saw an awful change come over he
countenance Her great eyes suddenly fxe'
themselves into an expression in which hoI
, ror seemed to struggle with some trsmendou
hope arising through the depths of her dar
soul The lovely face grow rigid, and tn
gracious, willowy form seemed to erect itself
"Man," she half whispered, half Missed
7 throwing bacl, her head like snake about t
, strike-"man, where didst thou get that scar
! alb on Thy handl Speak, or by tho Spirit o
Life will blast thee where thou standest" an
she took one light step toward me, and fror
her eyes there shono such an awful light
, to me 1t seemed almost like Aamc-that
fell, then and there, on the ground before hel
: babbling confusedly in my terror.
"There,n she said, with a sudden change @
manner, and speaking in her former sol
! voice, II did alright thee. Forgive mo Blu
at times, oh Holly, the almost infinite min
. grows impatient Of the slowness Of tho ver
finite, and l am tempted TO uso my powe
: out of sheer vexatlon. Very nearly was
!, thou dead, but l remembered. But th
= scarab-about the scArabeusln
y y II picked it up" gurgled, feebly, as &c
y on to my feet again-and it is a solemn fac
that my mind was so disturbed that at th
= moment could remember nothing else abou
y the ring except that picked it up in Leo